​10 tips to make the most of Amazon Prime Day

Amazon Prime members can expect huge deals on July 15, and Walmart has announced a rival sale. Here’s how to make the most of the savings.

For 24 hours, Amazon Prime members will have exclusive access to thousands of deals other Amazon shoppers won't have.
(Photo: Amazon)

July 15 will be a big day for Amazon Prime members. It’s Amazon
Prime Day,
a day with “more deals than Black Friday” planned exclusively for Prime members (even those who sign up for the free 30-day trial). The deals start at midnight PDT on Wednesday. There will be thousands of Lightning Deals and Deals of the Day throughout the 24 hours of savings. All deals will include free two-day shipping.

To keeps things interesting, Walmart
announced a rival sale
for the same day with 2,000 “rollbacks” in categories including electronics, baby, home and toys. Walmart’s deals will be
good for 90 days. There will also be special “atomic deals” that will be good only on Wednesday. Walmart has also lowered the price that triggers free shipping from $50 to $35.

I tend to prefer consuming experiences rather than stuff, but I do buy things from time to time. I’ll be looking to make the most of Wednesday since I’m a Prime member. Here are some tips to help save money and make the most of Amazon Prime Day.

Make sure you’re an Amazon Prime Member. If you aren’t a Prime member, sign up for the free 30-day trial membership. And this is really important: if you don’t want to be charged the $99 membership fee after the 30 days are over, cancel your free trial before the 30 days are up. When I want to cancel a free trial membership to anything, I put several alerts in my calendar to remind myself.

Check your Amazon payment settings. Make sure that your payment options are up to date. If you have more than one method of payment registered, make sure the one you want your Prime Day deals charged is the default. This will save you time on Wednesday, especially with Lightning Deals.

Make a reasonable list and resolve to stick to it
so you don’t go overboard. There will be thousands of deals that day, including tempting deals for things you never knew existed — or needed. To curb impulse buying, make your list before Wednesday with then resolve to purchase only what’s on that list
if the prices drop.

Make an Amazon Wish
List
of things on your list. Check it frequently
throughout the day for price decreases.

"Like" the Amazon Prime Day page on Facebook. This is the only source I've seen so far that offers any advance notice on specific deals. The page says "There’ll be a name brand 32-inch Smart HDTV for under $200 AND Chromebook laptops for $199" on Prime Day. Maybe the page will add more specifics closer to the event or update frequently on Wednesday? It may also be advantageous to follow Amazon's regular Facebook page.

Follow @Amazondeals on Twitter. It announces Deals of the Day and Lightning Deals.

Create a subscription for Amazon Deals emails, if you don’t already have one. Amazon will email you with Deals of the Day and other deals. Check your email frequently on Wednesday.

Comparing
the Amazon deal price with Walmart’s price.
Walmart has a Dare to Compare page where it lists items that are lower than Amazon’s prices (not including shipping). I have no idea how Walmart will choose its “atomic deals” on Wednesday, but if the company is purposely going head-to-head with Amazon, perhaps some of Walmart’s deals will be one the same items.

Listen to some music on Amazon Prime. This won’t help you get any discounts on the items on your wish list, but if you listen on Wednesday, you'll be automatically entered in a sweepstakes, making you eligible to win some of the $25,000 in gift cards Amazon is giving away that day.

Enter the #PrimeLiving Photo Contest. To promote its new Prime Photos service, Amazon is inviting people to upload a photo
showing a happy moment made possible by being a Prime member. Winners will receive part of the $10,000 in Amazon gift cards being awarded in this contest.

If you spend a little time between now and Wednesday getting yourself organized, you’ll have a better chance of not missing a deal on Amazon
Prime Day. You’ll also have a better chance of not overspending on impulse buys.

Do you have any additional tips for making the most of Amazon Prime Day?